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From all time, the manufacturing of transport equipment for people and merchandise has become more and more intense. The advent of the vapour engine revolutionized the systems of production, thus showing the many innovations of the industry of transport, and this, in all the fields. Precursor in the work organisation and in the concern of quality, this sector is also at the origin of many technologies.
In Quebec, the transport equipment industry is quite recent but has its place in the field of world affairs, specially with the rail passengers leader, Bombardier. With its annual trade volume of more than 15 billions and about 35 000 employees, it classifies itself among the greatest in the Quebec industrial sectors.
The industry of the special vehicles has developed itself in parallel to the other sectors, but it characterizes itself by its niche structure. In this way, It can afford particular needs of small quantity. This specificity has ensured this industry a regular growth in margin of the cyclic variations.
The industry of the special vehicles is made up of enterprises in the manufacturing and the repairing of truck bodies (buckets, vans, cisterns, municipal and airport emergency vehicles), of transformed and modified vehicles (semi trailers, utility trailers and vehicles, tamping, treedozers, loaders on wheels, lifting trucks…)
This sector is constituted of more than 280 companies, mainly of small size, present in market niches, very different within each other, and generates near than 12 000 employees.
| Sector | Number of Enterprises | Number of Employees | Annual Production |
|---|---|---|---|
| Truck Bodies | 106 | 2 300 | $305 M |
| Transformed and modified vehicles | 98 | 3 100 | $562 M |
| TOTAL | 204 | 5400 | $867 M |
More than 2 enterprises out of 3 in this sector are exporting (69%), mainly in the Canadian provinces and in the United States.
The good health of the market would still go on in the next years, particularly because of:
- the development of the activities in the transport and in the logistics (lifting trucks, trailers…);
- the implementation (developing countries) or the strengthening of the environmental politics (buckets for the treatment of the residual materials;
- the modernisation of utility vehicles (ambulances and trucks of fire control);
- the rise of itinerant tourism (motorized caravans).
The industry of Quebec is an accurate picture of the sector: dynamic and very diversified as well by the products offered by the niches of the market. This characteristic gives it an unquestionable advantage in regards to the cyclic variations of the markets. In addition, it is an experienced industry, world-wide recognized for some specific products. For several years, the companies of this sector have been gathered within an active trade association, which enables them to share information and thus to get a greater reactivity.
Marc-André LeBlanc – (418) 691-5698, poste 4892 – marc-andre.leblanc@mdeie.gouv.qc.ca
Source : Ministère du Développement économique, Innovation et Exportation
